Why 42% of Americans Are Not Costco Members
Written by
Heather Taylor
Edited by
Susan Kim
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What comes to mind when you think about Costco? Maybe you head there for all your grocery shopping needs, fill up your gas tank at one of its gas stations or splurge on a cheap and delicious hot dog at the food court. All of this is made possible thanks to having a Costco membership — but what about those who aren’t Costco members?
Non-Costco members make up a bigger percentage of Americans than you may realize. GOBankingRates polled 1,028 Americans in June 2023 to learn more about their Costco shopping habits; 42% of overall respondents said they were not Costco members.
As each age range ticked upward, there was a noticeably higher percentage of non-Costco members reflected in it.
- Ages 18 to 24: 28%
- Ages 25 to 34: 35%
- Ages 35 to 44: 41%
- Ages 45 to 54: 55%
- Ages 55 to 64: 54%
- Ages 65 and over: 60%
When isn’t a Costco membership worth it? Here’s why 42% of Americans choose not to be Costco members.
Lack of Locations
Location, location, location is a recurring mantra in real estate that also holds true to retailers. You might be more inclined to shop at Costco if you knew there was one where you lived. But it might not be worth it to join if there’s no location in the area.
Even though Costco is still opening new stores regularly, with five cities getting stores in 2023, and 590 locations in the United States, this is still a much smaller number when compared to other store retailers. Grocery chain Aldi has 2,299 locations and Walmart has 5,283 retail units and 3,561 Walmart Supercenters across the United States.
It’s also worth noting the Costco website says there are 590 Costco locations in 46 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. This means there are four states without any Costcos, some of which may be the home to the respondents surveyed by GOBankingRates.
Price Shopping Can Lead to Finding Better Deals Elsewhere
Amy Slenker-Smith, owner and CEO of Simply Enough, used to be a Costco member. She shopped with her family every month and bought groceries and paper products. In GOBankingRates’ survey, 28% of respondents who identified as Costco members said they shop there at least once a month.
There were several reasons Slenker-Smith decided to cancel her Costco membership, but one of the key reasons was testing the theory of how much money she saved shopping at Costco.
Slenker-Smith began price shopping to see whether she could find and buy items at better prices outside Costco. She blogged about finding competitively priced generic paper towels and how the grocery chain Wegmans sold family packs of ground beef and chicken. These were the same prices as the meats sold at Costco. The only difference was you didn’t need to pay a membership fee.
Bulk Shopping Isn’t for Everyone
At age 36, licensed clinical social worker Mary Elizabeth Wilkes Chand does not have a Costco membership and does not plan on purchasing one, either. Chand, who is married and does not have children, said she has no interest in shopping for bulk items.
Part of the appeal of shopping at Costco is the ability to buy groceries in bulk. Food, for 66% of respondents surveyed by GOBankingRates, is the top purchase made by Costco members. But for Chand, there is a lack of storage space in her home, and some bulk food will go bad before she’s able to eat it.
“I know Costco offers other services and items,” she said, “but I don’t know anyone personally who uses those services and can vouch that they are worth the membership fee. All in all, I would rather shop at a smaller retailer than endure the chaos of going to Costco.”
More From GOBankingRates
GOBankingRates surveyed 1,028 Americans aged 18 and older from across the country between June 27 and June 29, 2023, asking nine different questions: (1) Have you used Artificial Intelligence (AI) for any of the following? (Select all that apply); (2) In retirement, how much do you think you’ll need in Social Security monthly, in order to retire comfortably?; (3) How much do you spend on your average Costco trip?; (4) How often do you go to Costco?; (5) What items do you purchase most frequently at Costco?; (6) How do you think the restart of student loan payments will affect the economy in 2023 and beyond?; (7) How much student loan debt do you currently have?; (8) How will the restart of student loan payments affect your financial situation? (Select all that apply); and (9) How much did you (or expect to) inherit from your parents/relatives?. GOBankingRates used PureSpectrum’s survey platform to conduct the poll.
